Extension of the Advancing Gender Equality in Gender Segregated Industries grant program

Future Makers

The project seeks to build on ACCI’s Future Makers project from the pilot program with its 3 integrated pillars that focus on small business:

1. Chamber Change: Small Business – continuing to advance this initiative by deepening its impact nationally and expanding its reach into regional Australia.
2. Future Makers Online Hub – ACCI will continue to develop and publish practical small business resources, case studies, success stories and capability-building tools that are accessible online at a participant’s convenience
3. ACCI Women in Small Business Summit – the Summit will connect women entrepreneurs with peers, mentors, industry leaders and policymakers.

Advancing Gender Equality in Gender Segregated Industries - A National Program for Research, Evidence Based Solutions and Implementation Support

The project is a direct extension of Australian Industry Group’s project from the pilot program, building on insights gathered across small, medium and large manufacturing organisations. Drawing on the pilot program findings, the project aims to address persistent barriers such as low workforce engagement with gender equality initiatives, inconsistent communication, rigid work conditions, and entrenched gendered norms across male-dominated industries.

The program will continue to predominantly focus on the manufacturing sector and will consider other sectors on a case-by-case basis. Australian Industry Group’s program approach comprises 4 interrelated projects:

1. Project 1: Continue to Implement Solutions with the Original Cohort
2. Project 2: Qualitative Research with a New Cohort of Participants
3. Project 3: Solution Development
4. Project 4: Solution Implementation.

She Means Business

The project is an extension of COSBOA’s She Means Business pilot program, supporting small businesses to increase female representation in gender segregated industries through tailored capability uplift, leadership development and workplace practice improvements. The extension will deliver structured support to 120 small businesses nationally, building on pilot evidence. The project will develop practical solutions addressing gender segregation, generating longer-term evidence on what works for small businesses, and embedding recent workplace relations reforms into participating businesses. Activities will focus on workplace flexibility, inclusive cultures and removing barriers to female participation, with independent evaluation tracking sustained change over time.

Gender Equity Program

The project will extend the work undertaken in Unions NSW’s pilot project and incorporate and build on the pilot learnings. The program will work with male allies in NSW male-dominated workplaces to create safe and respectful work environments where women can work and progress without experiencing sexual harassment or sex-based discrimination. Adult education and behaviour change training for all workers, and specific training for Peer Leaders, will use experiential learning and reflective practice strategies. It will engage men as ethical bystanders and actors in workplace culture change. Peer leaders will be resourced to influence workplace culture toward safety and respect. The program will work with unions and employers to eliminate structural gender inequality in workplace instruments, policy and practice.

Workplaces for Women - Work that Works for Everyone

The Workplaces for Women project builds directly on Victorian Trades Hall Council’s pilot program. The program advances gender equality in gender segregated industries by addressing structural barriers to women's participation, safety, inclusion and career progression. It embeds worker-led strategies to empower women and unions to drive lasting workplace and industry level change. Workplaces for Women builds on growing momentum from workplace relations reforms, trains and connects workers and supports unions with the knowledge and tools to advance gender equality. The program includes the following activities:

• targeted research
• expand a gender equality audit tool
• hold a three-day women-only training program on women’s leadership, confidence and capability to advance gender equality initiatives at workplace and industry levels
• an Ally Training program for workplace leaders and representatives to drive accountability and embed cultural change
• forums and an annual conference
• practical resources such as fact sheets
• a women-led communications strategy and campaign
• an evaluation component.

Queensland Women Rise

The Queensland Women Rise project builds on the pilot program which is supporting women working in male-dominated industries, including construction, transport and maritime, by expanding to other blue-collar industry sectors and workplaces in Queensland.

The project will deliver tailored training, resources and support to union organisers, delegates, health and safety representatives and workers to advance gender equality, flexible work arrangements, cultural safety, and respectful workplace cultures. Work will continue with employers on pilot worksites as appropriate in selected industries to help inform learnings and trials to upscale initiatives across the sector.

Critical Inclusion: Building SA's Prosperity Through Gender Equality

The project supports the attraction, retention and progression of women within the highly gender segregated industries of defence industry, advanced manufacturing and STEM/ICT in South Australia. The project will do this through the development and delivery of targeted gender equality initiatives focused on improving flexible work, work culture, workplace amenities, and work health and safety, developed and honed through testing and ongoing consultation, and underpinned by quantitative and qualitative research. The initiatives, tailored for targeted South Australian workplaces, include the delivery of tools and resources, supported by educational sessions and training.

Workplace Gender Equality Project

The project will develop and test best-practice solutions targeting a range of issues to address gender segregation in WA's workplaces. Solutions are based on issues identified during the pilot program and are to be piloted in workplaces around WA. Solutions are developed in conjunction with employers, industry and unions and will include policies, procedures and clauses, and a model of core changes. Stakeholders will be trained on these solutions to ensure their implementation, which will include workplace flexibility workshops. Other activities include expanding women's networks, undertaking further empirical research on the uptake and adoption of proposed solutions, by measuring their acceptance by men-dominated membership into logs of claims. It will also deliver training to workers, employers, and unions on positive duty, safe and respectful workplaces, clauses, policies, and procedures.

Gender Equity Works

The project is an expansion of Unions Tasmania’s project under the pilot program, extending its reach across Tasmania to support gender equity in gender segregated industries. The project will be delivered statewide, with engagement occurring across metropolitan, regional, and rural communities. Building on the findings from the pilot program, Gender Equity Works will expand beyond the 3 initial industries to a Tasmania-wide program, building further specialised training modules to add to a learning suite, establishing year-round peer networks, and creating practical pathways for men to become active allies in gender equity.

Equality Works – Empowering women in gender segregated workplaces

The project will build on the initiatives and learnings from Unions ACT’s Equality Works project under the pilot program. Unions ACT will implement activities aimed at transforming workplace cultures for everyone while also focusing on inclusivity to ensure that historically marginalised cohorts of workers, such as First Nations women, migrant women and LGBTQIA+ groups, are included. The Equality Works project will gather more evidence through intentional and intensive primary research to provide evidence-based learnings that will be beneficial in the longer term and can inform future initiatives by government, industry, unions, and civil society, especially in the ACT context.

Improving Workplace Readiness, Safety and Inclusion Across Highly Gender-Segregated Industries

This project aims to advance gender equality and women’s economic participation across gender segregated industries in the Northern Territory by addressing structural barriers embedded in workplace systems, cultures and practices. The project will conduct further research to explore strategies to address the lack of women in leadership positions, with findings informing the development of training materials, policies and procedures. Through targeted worksite audits, gender audits, training and the development of practical, scalable tools, the project aims to improve workplace readiness and support women’s attraction and retention.